Storage devices for discs include single-compartment crystal boxes for CD discs which lock a disc by means entering its center-hole when in storage position within the compartment and induce a user to pick it up to remove it from the box by its periphery and/or its center hole in order to avoid any contact with the CD disc surfaces after the box cover is pivoted to open the box. These boxes, however, are bulky and require a large space for the opening of the covers; furthermore, as they necessitate the use of both hands, they are not very easy to use and not appropriate at all when being handled by car-drivers to extract discs for car CD players.
Other storage and player/recorder units more particularly designed for car use, which are of the so-called "drawer" type, only allow the discs to protrude by a very limited distance, thus forcing the user to grasp the discs between thumb and forefinger which results in undesirable contact with the disc surfaces, which cannot be avoided. A typical example of such devices is disclosed in German Patent 37 28 113 C2.
A device which allows the disc to protrude to a greater extent outside the storage compartment to facilitate pick-up is disclosed in UK 589.187, but its size is bulky due to the pivoting movement of the disc support, which bulky size is a disadvantage because of the limited space available in many applications.
Commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 4,664,454 discloses a storage device which is more compact than the above-mentioned devices but the disc must be inserted in a skewed way and this is not always easy or appropriate because the required space is not always available where the device is to be installed.